This invention relates to cargo handling systems for aircraft, and more particularly to an on-board autonomous cargo handling system which minimizes the need for ground-based material handling equipment.
The loading or unloading of cargo aircraft typically is a labor intensive operation, involving the extensive use of ground-based material handling equipment, such as forklifts, and considerable manual labor. As a result, the process can be long, tedious, expensive, and dangerous. A typical process for unloading an aircraft involves moving the cargo, often by hand, down a cargo ramp onto the ground from the aircraft cargo bed floor. Then, a forklift is used to pick up the cargo and move it to a truck. The forklift tines are raised to the level of the cargo bed of the truck, after which the cargo is wrestled by hand from the tines onto the bed for transport to its destination. The process involves several steps and considerable danger of injury to the loaders responsible for manually moving the cargo. In the military setting, in particular, there are additional considerations. Often, the loading or unloading is taking place at an austere forward base where material handling equipment is unavailable or in short supply. Also, under such circumstances time may be critically short for performing the operation. Therefore, what is needed is an on-board cargo handling system which is easy to use, quick, and allows a direct transfer of cargo from the aircraft cargo bed to a truck bed without the use of ground-based material handling equipment and with a minimum of manpower.